FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates, in general, to faucets and, specifically, to faucet handles.
Faucets are commonly employed to control the flow of water. In a typical faucet, such as an outdoor faucet, a faucet body containing a flow control valve is mounted in an exterior wall of the building and contains an outlet located exteriorally of the building. A stem connected to the valve extends outward from the faucet body and receives a handle. Rotation of the handle thereby causes rotation of the stem and the valve between open and closed positions.
Faucet stems come in a variety of shapes including a stem having four flat sides arranged in a square, and stems having circumfentially spaced teeth, such as splines or serrations, etc. Handles are formed with an internal bore having a configuration mateable with a particular stem configuration. Any replacement of the handle or the installation of a new handle, such as a decorative handle in the form of a figure, requires matching of the handle bore to the stem configuration.
In order to simplify the installation of handles on faucets, to provide an attractive appearance by covering the handle attachment fastener or to provide a measure of universality in view of the number of different stem configurations, adapters have been employed which mount over the faucet stem and receive a handle thereover. However, such adapters have been complicated in construction and utilize a number of separate parts which results in a high cost.
Thus, it would be desirable to provide an apparatus for mounting a handle on any conventional faucet stem. It would also be desirable to provide an apparatus for mounting a decorative handle on any conventional faucet stem. It would also be desirable to provide a decorative faucet handle mounting apparatus which is of simple construction and low cost. Finally, it would be desirable to provide a kit for mounting a decorative handle to a faucet stem which enables a decorative handle to be mounted on most conventional shaped faucet stems.